WinDrop privacy policy
Last updated 2 August 2026.
This covers the WinDrop apps for Windows and iPhone. The main privacy policy covers the website.
The short version
- Your files go straight from one of your devices to the other. Nothing is uploaded anywhere.
- There is no server, no cloud storage, and no account to create.
- Nobody else ever holds your files — not me, not a hosting company, not anyone.
- No telemetry, no analytics, no adverts, no tracking of any kind.
- Neither app works over the internet at all. It only speaks to devices on your own network.
How a transfer actually works
Both apps run on your own devices, on your own Wi‑Fi. When you send a file, the sending device opens a direct connection to the receiving device over your local network and hands the file across. That is the whole journey.
There is no intermediate copy. The file is not staged on a server, not queued in a cloud, and not held anywhere in between. If your router is switched off, nothing can be sent — because there is no other route for it to take.
What is stored, and by whom
| What | Where it is kept |
|---|---|
| Files you send | On the sending device and, after transfer, the receiving device. Both are yours. |
| Files you receive | Saved to the folder you choose on that device. Nowhere else. |
| App settings | On the device itself — things like the last address used and your download folder. |
| Anything at all held by the developer | Nothing. There is no server, so there is nowhere for me to hold anything even if I wanted to. |
What the apps never do
- They never upload your files to any service.
- They never send a list of your files, their names, or their contents anywhere.
- They never ask for an email address, a name, or a password.
- They contain no analytics, no crash reporting, and no third‑party advertising or tracking code.
- They do not read your contacts, your location, or your photos beyond the specific file you choose to send.
Security, stated plainly
Current versions do not encrypt transfers between Windows and iPhone
Transfers between a Windows PC and an iPhone currently use plain HTTP on your local network. That means someone else already on your Wi‑Fi, with the right tools and the intent to use them, could in principle observe a transfer in progress.
On your own home network this is a small risk. On shared or public Wi‑Fi it is a real one, so do not send anything sensitive over a network you do not control until this is fixed.
Encryption with a pairing PIN is planned for v0.3 and this page will be updated when it ships. Transfers between two Apple devices already use Apple’s MultipeerConnectivity, which is encrypted.
Nothing is exposed to the internet: the apps listen only on your local network, and your router does not forward those connections outward unless you have deliberately configured it to.
Permissions the apps use
- Local network — the entire point. iOS will ask you to allow this the first time; the app cannot find your PC without it.
- Files — read access to the specific file you pick to send, and write access to the folder where received files are saved. Nothing is scanned or indexed.
- Camera — only if you use QR pairing, and only while that screen is open. Nothing is recorded or kept.
Sideloading and Apple
The iPhone app is installed with SideStore or AltStore and re‑signed with your own free Apple ID. That process is between you, that tool and Apple. I receive nothing from it and have no visibility into it whatsoever.
Children
The apps collect nothing from anyone, of any age, so there is nothing that could be collected from a child.
Changes
If any of this changes, the date at the top changes with it, and anything affecting you will be stated here before a version making that change is released.
Contact
Questions about this policy — see how to get in touch. There is no data held about you to request or delete: removing the apps removes everything.